_Thus saith the Lord to his anointed_, &c. Cyrus is called the Lord's _anointed_, a title usually given to the kings of the Jews, who were God's immediate deputies, not because material oil had been poured upon him when he was made king, as was the case with most of them, but because he was raised u... [ Continue Reading ]
_I will go before thee_ To remove all obstructions, and prepare the way for thee. “The divine protection which attended Cyrus, and rendered his expedition against Babylon easy and prosperous, is finely expressed by this highly poetical image of God's going before him, and making the mountains level.... [ Continue Reading ]
_For Jacob my servant's sake_, &c. The prophet here gives us the reasons why God showed such favour to a prince, who had been addicted to the superstition of his country, and ignorant of the true God, that he prospered all his undertakings, and gave success to all his endeavours. It was, 1st, For Is... [ Continue Reading ]
_I form the light, and create darkness_, &c. All men's comforts and calamities come from my hand. “It was the great principle of the Magian religion, which prevailed in Persia in the time of Cyrus, and in which probably he was educated, that there are two supreme, coeternal, and independent causes,... [ Continue Reading ]
_Drop down, ye heavens, from above_, &c. It appears from the last clause of this verse, that these are the words of Jehovah himself, commanding blessings to descend upon his people, and exhorting his people willingly and gratefully to receive them, and to walk worthy of them. The passage is strongly... [ Continue Reading ]
_Wo unto him that striveth_, &c. Bishop Lowth renders this verse, “Wo unto him that contendeth with the power that formed him, the potsherd with the moulder of the clay! Shall the clay say to the potter, What makest thou? And to the workman, Thou hast no hands.” “The prophet,” he thinks, “answers or... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thus saith the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker_ Israel's Maker. A preface this which always ushers in some gracious promise: see Isaiah 43:1; Isaiah 43:3; Isaiah 43:14; and Isaiah 44:6; and Isaiah 48:17. _Ask me of things to come_, &c. The words thus rendered contain a concession, and the sense o... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thus saith the Lord_, &c. Here the prophet turns to Jerusalem, or to the company of returning exiles, and relates some joyful consequence of the deliverance foretold, which probably chiefly respects the future admission of the Gentiles into the church of God. _The labour of Egypt_ The wealth gotten... [ Continue Reading ]
_Verily_, &c. These are the words of the prophet, drawn from him by the consideration of the great and various works and dispensations of God toward his church, and in the world; _thou art a God that hidest thyself_ Namely, from thy people for a season: thy counsels are deep and incomprehensible, an... [ Continue Reading ]
_They_ The idolatrous Gentiles, as it is explained in the end of the verse, opposed to Israel in the beginning of the next verse, _shall be ashamed_, &c. Hebrew, בושׁו וגם גכלמר כלם, _They are ashamed, they are even confounded, all of them;_ that is, after the completion of this prophecy. _They shal... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thus saith the Lord_ Hebrew, _Jehovah; that created the heavens_, &c. This description of God is here added, 1st, To detect the vanity of idols, by asserting that none was to be owned as the true God, besides that one Jehovah who made the heavens and the earth, and the inhabitants thereof. 2d, To d... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place_, &c. This is declared in opposition to the manner in which the heathen oracles gave their answers; which were generally delivered not only darkly and doubtfully, but from obscure cells and caverns of the earth: such was the seat of the Cumean Sibyl: _“... [ Continue Reading ]
_Draw near together_ To attend to what I have said, and am now about to say again, concerning the vanity of your idols; _ye that are escaped of the nations_ Ye that survive those many and great destructions which I am bringing upon heathen nations for their abominable idolatries and other wickedness... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have sworn by myself_ Which is the highest and most solemn oath possible, Hebrews 6:13; and therefore signifies that the matter, thus confirmed, is of extraordinary importance. _The word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness_ It is what I will faithfully perform. _And shall not return_ Namely,... [ Continue Reading ]
_In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel_ All Israelites indeed, whether Jews or Gentiles; all believers, who are frequently called God's Israel in Scripture; _be justified_ Acquitted, both from real guilt before God, and from all false aspersions before the world; for this justification of the tru... [ Continue Reading ]